Bench-vise.



.Pa-tained may 2s, 190|. M.' G. LEWIS. Y

BENCH VlSE.

(Application led Jan. 3, 1901.)

^ 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

Patented May 2a, 190|.

9 ..1 Es, wm EVJ LHw .Cm GNn .am MEM P 2 Shaets-Shet 2.

(No Modal.)

vwewcoz Morfn/er G. I. e wis Stroe/neg L MORTIMER G. LEVIS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

BENCH-NISE.

SPEGFGAQN forming part of Letters Patent N o. 675,097, dated May 28, 1901.

Application filed January 3, 1901l Serial No. 41,946. (No model.)

To all whom, it may conceive:

Be it known that I, MORTIMER G. LEWIS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New York city, in the count-y of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bench-Vises, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to bench-vises, and especially to that class known as quick-acting vises, which term refers to their rapidity of operation or the quickness with which one jaw may be adjusted tol and from the other, so as to readily accommodate various thicknesses of work.

Comparatively few vises of the above class have been devised, and these are all more or less faulty by reason of their complicated and expensive construction, necessitating a series of movements to accomplish the operation sought or of a nature which requires knowledge and enactness of manipulation, besides further objections which I have sought to overcome in my present invention.

It is the object of my invention to generally improve vises of the above class and particularly to provide a construction which may be more quickly operated and with fewer movements and manipulations of parts than anything of a like character now upon the market, and, further, to increase their stability, gathering qualities, simplify and cheapen their construction, so as to bring the vises in reach of all, and to insure a more universal usage of the same.

I accomplish the above features and obtain other minor points of advantage in the matter of practical production and operation with my vise, which will be apparent to those skilled in the art, as will be herein later more fully described, and recited in the claims.

With the above objects in view my invention resides and consists in the novel construction and combination of parts shown upon the accompanying two sheets of drawings, forming a part of this specification, upon which similar letters of reference denote like or corresponding parts throughout the several figures, and of which- Figure l shows a plan view of my complete vise. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view similar to Fig. 2, but illustrating the parts in a disengaged position. Fig. et is a detail crosssection upon line i a of Fig. 3, showing the construction of the sliding bar, one 0f its bearings for the shaft, and a transverse engaging roll carried by said bar. Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 2, illustrating the adjustable nut upon the screw within the sliding bar and the relation of said nut to the bar. Fig. 6 shows a detached side and end view, respectively, of the adjustable nut before referred to.

The design of the vise may be of any preferred or well-known type, adapting it for regular benchwork or for special purposes, and yet be equally as well adapted to my improvements, which are shown upon the accompanying drawings as applied to a popular form of vise, adapted for general shop usage.

Referring in detail to the characters of reference marked upon the several figures of the drawings, A represents a fixed jaw, which is formed integral with a stationary base B. This base contains lateral webs C C C, each being provided with a bolt-hole, by means of which the contrivance is secured to the bench upon which it is mounted.

D represents the adjustable jaw, and E the sliding bar, which is formed integral with and carries said movable jaw to and from the fixed jaw in the operation of the device. This slidable bar E is hollow and open from the under side, thus consisting of the top and two side walls. The exterior surface of this bar slidably engages ways F of the base in a manner to insure accuracy of adjustment and ease of operation.

lVithin the sliding bar is arranged an op erating screw or rod G, the same being journaled in transverse webs or bridgings H H H2, situated at opposite ends and interjacent of the bar. Upon the forward end of this screw is located a manipulating-handle I, by means of which the device is opened or closed and also tightened and released from the work. A collar J is secured to the screw and preferably against the web H, so as to securely hold said screw against lateral movement. The rear portion of the screw G is provided with a coarse right-hand thread K, operatively located between the bridges H and H. Upon this threaded portion of the screw is mounted a slidable nut L. (Shown IOO in the'sectional figures of the drawings and in detail in Fig. 6.) This nut, as will be seen, is made rather long, so as to insure ample bearing-surface for the screw and likewise for the desired purchase thereagainst to perform the oflices for which it is intended. An ear M projects from the nut, forming a pivotal ear for a pawl N of special construction, as will later again be referred to. At either side of this nut and preferably projecting downwardly therefrom are guides O 0, having their outer surfaces finished to engage ways P P upon the lower inner edge of .the side walls of the sliding bar, all of which serve to afford a lateral movement of the nut, at the same time holding it lirmly in avertical position against rotary movement for purposes which will later be apparent. The pawl N, before mentioned, consists of a forwardlydisposed member having an under serrated tooth-engaging surface Q, a top horizontal surface R, the forward end of which merges into an incline of a pocket S, the upper wall of which is correspondingly surfaced or inclined for the purpose of engaging a transverse roll T of the pin U, whose ends are secured in the side walls ofthe bar. The under serrated face of this pawl is designed to engage a rack V, secured to the vise 'by means of suitable screw-bolts W or, in fact, in any other suitable manner. (Not shown.)

With the above description of the construction of my device I will briefly describe its method of operation and endeavor to distinguish some of its advantages from other prior constructions,

The position illustrated in Figs. l and 2 of the drawings represents a lockedposition of the vise-that is, one in which the parts would be if an article were grasped therein. Presuming such to be the case and if it were desired to release the article so engaged, the operator would grasp the handle I, giving it a turn to the left, which would impart a slight forward movement to the movable jaw, its bar and screw, and retain the nut and its pawl in substantially the same position with relation to the base of the vise as is now shown. When said movable parts have come forward sufficiently to cause the roll T to engage the inclined upper wall S of the pawl N, the latter will seat itself on said roll, and thereby raise and disengage from the rack, leaving the sliding bar, nut, pawl, dac., all free to be moved directly forward or backward to give the desired adjustment of the movable jaw with relation to the fixed one without any further rotary movement to the handle and its screw. In the grasping of the article between theY jaws of the vise the operation is equally simple and would consist only in placing said article between t-he jaws ofthe vise and shoving by direct force against the handle orjaw in a manner to set the loose jaw against the outer wall of the article, whereupon with a slight turn by the handle the screw would impart a forward movement to the nut, which in turn would force its pawl from the roller and wedge it down in between the roll and rack in a manner to insure the engagement of the teeth upon the pawl with those of the rack, thus producing a positive, durable, and reliable connection,

By reason of the construction hereinbefore described I am enabled to provide a quickacting vise whereinthe grip of the jaws may not only be released, but wherein said jaws are positively separated by the backward rotation of the handle and its screw, thus backing the movable jaw away from the object held, leaving said object free for removal.

A further feature of advantage with my construction is that it possesses greater gathering qualities than other quick-acting vises with which I am familiar. This feature is gotten by reason of the fact that the initial movement of the screw causes the pawl to quickly engage the rack, at which instant the movable jaw begins to close, and that with the further rotation of said screw the roll rides along on the level plain of the pawl until the nut fetches up against the shoulder H', as will be obvious, the amount of said gather being` only limited by the distance between the shoulders H and H and the length of the thread on the screw, which can be varied to suit.

With the construction hereinbefore outlined it will be seen that but two movements of the handle are required by the operator to perfect the locking or unlocking of the vise, which movements consist in the former instance of a simple forward thrust or shove, running the jaw in against the stock to be grasped, and, second, in a slight rotary motion of the handle and its screw and whereby the final pressure and locking of the loose jaw against the work are effected.

The details of construction of my apparatus may be varied in several particulars without materially departing from the essence of my invention, and therefore I do not wish to be limited to the eXact construction shown and described, since my invention is broad enough to cover other modifications, particularly wherein a sliding nut and a pawl and rack are employed in combination with a sliding and fixed jaw and an operating-screw.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The-combination in a vise of a fixed and movable head, a screw in the latter, a threaded nut secured upon said screw and having projecting guides, raised finished ways in the head for said guides, a pawl carried by said nut bearing a horizontal and angular top engaging edge and having its end turned backward to form an under angular engaging edge, a transverse pin against which said pawl operates to hold the same in lock while the horizontal surface portion of said pawl rides under said pin and on the reverse movement to shift the position of said pawl by the IIO engagement of the under angular edge of the backward-turned end with said p in, a fixed rack for engagement by said paWl, as and for the purpose set forth.

2. A bench-vise of the character described comprising a fixed member, a movable bar carrying a head and mounted in said fixed member, a screw operatively mounted in said slidable member, a nut mounted on said screw and bearing projecting guides, raised vertical Ways in said bar against Which said guides operate to insure its vertical position, a pawl connected to said nut having an inclined hooked-like pocket at its forward end, a transverse pin in the bar for engagement With the hook of said pawl to raise it out of lock, a iixed rack secured to the fixed member of the vise, for the purpose of engagement with the pawl before mentioned.

The combination in a bench-vise of a fixed head, a movable head bearing a bar slidably mounted in said fixed head, a screw mounted in said bar, a nut upon said screw, stops to limit the endWise movement of the nut to determine the amount of gather, finished projecting guides at opposite sides of the nut, Ways for said guides to slidably re-l tain the nut in va Vertical position, a pawl connected to said nut having an inclined hooked end, a transverse pin secured to the bar and to engage the hooked end of the paWl in a manner to impart to it a vertical disengaging movement, a fixed rack for engagement With the paWl whereby the parts are locked in position, substantially as shown and described.

Signed at Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, this 2d day of January, A. D. 1901.

MORTIMER G. LE WIS.

Vitnesscs:

C. M. NEWMAN, WILLIAM V. DEvITr. 

